Page 48

The urge to tear into Derrek Sidney’s letters burned through me all morning. But Dad needed me. I promised to take him over to Lou Gimble’s body shop to have a look at the damage to the Five Hundred.

For the first time in my life, I truly appreciated that car. Dad had crashed into that ditch with force. But the don’t-make-’em-like-they-used-to American-made solid steel frame easily handled the brunt of it. In addition to his bent passenger-side mirror and gouge from his brush with the street sign, he now had a shattered driver’s side headlight and a bent grille.

“It’ll take some doing,” Lou said. “But I’m game if you’re game. I’ve got a hookup in Belleville that is pretty reliable on finding me what I need for these old cars. It’ll cost ya.”

Dad grimaced, but told Lou to do whatever needed to be done. It avoided the elephant in the room for another week or so. I had the keys to the newer Lincoln Nautilus I drove, and the Five Hundred was undrivable. Dad wasn’t going anywhere without a chauffeur for right now.

As soon as we got back to the office and I started spreading Sidney’s letters on the conference table, the front doorbells jangled.

“You expecting somebody?” Dad asked.

“No, I’ve got a three o’clock. Kent Derby’s coming in for a status report.”

“Still trying to find dirt on Liza, is he?”

My client, Kent, was in the middle of a messy divorce where spousal support was the sticking point. He’d asked me to find out if his wife was cheating on him. Not my favorite kind of case, but Kent was a decent guy and it paid the bills.

“Ms. Gale?” a male voice called out.

Dad rose with me. “Stay here,” I said. I peeked down the hall as Landon Bell stood at the empty reception desk.

When I walked out to the lobby, Landon’s face lit up. He wore a golf shirt with a Garrity Lumber logo, khakis, and work boots. Geneva told me he’d switched shifts since she moved back so they could better tag-team their father’s care.

“Ms. Gale,” he said. “I’m really sorry to barge in like this. Am I interrupting?”

“Not at all,” I said. “Is everything okay?”

His face fell. “I’m worried about my sister. Can we talk for a few minutes? I don’t have much time. My shift starts in twenty minutes.”

“Of course.” I gestured for him to follow me to my office. We passed the open conference room door. Landon looked inside and stopped.

“Hey, Mr. Gale,” he said. “Glad to see you’re up and about.”

I heard a bona fide growl from my dad. I grabbed Landon by the sleeve and dragged him along with me.

“Did I say something wrong?” he asked.

“He’s just ... stubborn.”

Landon smiled. “Oh, I know what that’s like. My dad keeps making things worse by trying to do too much; he can’t anymore. It’s hard for these old guys. They don’t like to accept help. They don’t want to be a burden but a lot of the time not asking for help is what makes the burden worse, you know?”

I did. But with Dad in the next room, I certainly didn’t want to get too deeply into the topic.

“Have a seat,” I said, sitting behind my desk.

“Aw, no. I really just need a couple of minutes. I’m worried about Geneva. Ever since she had that meeting with you and called the cops, I can’t get her to leave the house. She won’t admit it, but she’s terrified.”

I feared this would happen. Geneva might be starting to shut down.

“This all falls on you, doesn’t it?” I asked. “Taking care of your father. Now Geneva’s struggling.”

“It’s okay. I don’t want to leave the wrong impression. Geneva’s been a godsend. I would have had to figure out how to take a leave of absence if I couldn’t convince Dad to stay at one of those rehab places. Which he won’t. Or he’d insist he was fine at home alone then fall or hurt himself while I was gone. Geneva’s really good with him. And having her here put new life into him.”

“So what can I do?” I asked.

“The cops don’t seem able to do anything. There weren’t any security cameras at McClaren’s. Nobody saw anything. They don’t have any leads on who vandalized her car. I know she came to you because she’s scared of something. She won’t tell me. And I’m not asking you to break her confidence or anything. It’s just that maybe you could come out and talk to her. She trusts you. Maybe tomorrow?”

I hesitated. Geneva and I agreed that our meetings would take place anywhere but her home. “How would your father feel about that?” I asked. “I know he’s not my biggest fan.”